Inspection Report Not A Repair List For Seller
So, you’ve hired a home inspector to make a complete repair list for the home you’re buying. The inspector did a thorough job and disclosed some serious problems with the property. Maybe it was in the plumbing, or the electric wiring. Perhaps it was the roof. But the seller refuses to fix anything. Is the seller responsible to make these repairs? Were you under the impression that the sellers must repair the problems discovered by home inspectors?
This can be all very disillusioning. This is a common misunderstanding about the purpose of a home inspection. People often view an inspection report as a mandatory repair list for the seller. The fact is sellers are not required to produce a flawless house. They have no such obligation by law or by contract.
With a termite report, requirements are different: Real estate contracts usually obligate a seller to repair conditions classified as ‘section one’ in the termite inspector. Section one includes instances of active infestation — termites, fungus, dryrot, etc. Other faulty conditions, such as earth to wood contact, generally do not require action on the part of the seller, unless infestation is found.
With a home inspection, most repairs are subject to negotiation between the parties of a sale. Typically, buyers will request that various conditions be repaired before the close of escrow, and sellers will usually acquiesce to some of these demands. But with most building defects, sellers make repairs as a matter of choice, not obligation; to foster good will or to facilitate consummation of the sale. There are, of course, those few rigid sellers who will flatly refuse to fix anything, even at the risk of losing the sale. Fortunately, this response is the exception, rather than the rule.
Sellers maintain the legal right to refuse repair demands, except where requirements are set forth by state law, local ordinance, or the real estate purchase contract. Legal obligations include earthquake straps for water heaters and smoke detectors in specified locations. Contracts usually stipulate that fixtures be in working condition at the close of escrow, that windows not be broken, and that there be no existing leaks in the roof or plumbing.
Before you make any demands of the seller, try to evaluate the inspection report with an eye toward problems of greatest significance. Look for conditions which compromise health and safety or involve active leakage. Most sellers will address problems affecting sensitive areas such as the roof, fireplace, gas burning fixtures, or electrical wiring.
Routine maintenance items warrant a lesser degree of concern and should not be pressed upon the seller. If the house is not brand new, it is unreasonable to boldly insist upon correction of all defects. Such demands can alienate the seller and kill the sale. Your willingness to accept minor problems may persuade a seller to correct conditions of greater substance.
The purpose of a home inspection is not to corner the seller with a repair list. The primary objective is to know what you are buying before you buy it. All homes have defects; it’s not possible to acquire one that is perfect. What you want is a working knowledge of significant defects before you close escrow. As the old sea captain once told me: ‘It doesn’t matter if your boat has a leak, as long as you know it’s leaking.
This is just a top level overview. Contact me at RonLeeEmail@aol.com
